Las Vegas shooter’s girlfriend Marilou Danley ‘had no idea’ he was planning massacre – and thought he sent her to the Philippines to break up with her

Marilou Danley told her family that she had a 'clean conscience', having returned to the US to be questioned by police

By Brittany Vonow and Patrick Knox

5th October 2017,6:30 am

Updated: 6th October 2017,7:39 am

THE girlfriend of the Las Vegas mass murderer Stephen Paddock has today insisted she had no idea of the slaughter he was plotting when he sent her abroad to see her family.

Marilou Danley, 62, who was not in the US at the time of modern America’s worst gun massacre, said she had instead thought the high-stakes gambler had wired £75,000 overseas to her as a way of breaking up.

Marilou Danley was in a wheelchair when she was met by detectives, going on to speak to investigation police about the massacre

Ms Danley, who was out of the country for more than two weeks but voluntarily returned to the US to “clear her name” after the shooting, released a statement after being quizzed by cops about her boyfriend.

The sisters of Marilou said they believed the 62-year-old had been sent out of the country

Ms Danley, who was wheeled through the Los Angeles International Airport on her arrival back in the US, said she had been pleased when Paddock wired her the hefty sum, but she later feared it was a way to break up with her.

She said: “A little more than two weeks ago, Stephen said he found a cheap ticket for me to the Philippines and that he wanted me to take a trip to see my family.

“Like all Filipinos abroad, I was excited to go home and see family and friends. While there, he wired me money which he said was for me to buy a house for me and my family.

“I was grateful, but honestly I was worried that first, the unexpected trip home and then the money, was a way of breaking up with me.”

She added: “It never occurred to me in any way whatsoever that he was planning violence against anyone.

“I have not made a statement until now because I am cooperating with the authorities.

“And I voluntarily flew back to America because I knew that the FBI and Las Vegas police department wanted to talk to me – and I wanted to talk to them.

“I will cooperate fully with their investigation, and anything I can do to help ease suffering or help in any way, I will do.”

He never said anything to me, or took any action that I was aware of, that I understood in any way to be a warning that something horrible like this was going to happen

Marilou DanleyGirlfriend of Stephen Paddock

She said that as a mother and grandmother, her heart was broken for all those who had lost loved ones.

ABCNews reported that she had assured her family she had a “clean conscience”, telling her older brother Reynaldo Bustos not to “panic” after it was revealed police wanted to speak to her about the gun massacre that lasted between nine to 11 minutes and saw 58 people killed and more than 500 injured on Las Vegas’ Strip on Sunday night.

Her sisters have suggested the woman was “sent away” to the Philippines by Paddock so that she would not interfere with his plans.

One of the sisters told Channel Seven: “He sent her away so that he can plan what he is planning without interruptions.”

They added she was a “good person and gentle soul” and said they hoped she could help authorities.

The unnamed woman said: “No one can put the puzzles together. No one. Except Marilou. Because Steve is not here to talk anymore. Only Marilou can maybe help.”

Shockwaves rippled through the community at the apparent lack of obvious motive, with FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe telling CNBC: “There’s all kinds of things that surprise us on these kinds of events, that’s the one on this one.

“This individual … didn’t leave the sort of immediate thumbprints you find on these kinds of attacks.”

The brother of Paddock, Eric, said he had been left destroyed by the gun massacre, telling US media: “When Steve can do this we’re in deep s*** because there’s just nothing there.

“I hope to hell they find when they do the autopsy that there’s a tumor in his head or something because if they don’t we’re all in trouble.”

FACES OF THE INNOCENT We remember the 59 victims killed in the senseless Las Vegas shooting

He told the New York Times that his brother had doted on Marilou, saying: “She was probably one of the only people I’ve ever seen that he’d go out of his way to do a little thing for.”

But others suggested their relationship was a turbulent one, with Starbucks workers telling the Los Angeles Times that Paddock often berated his girlfriend in front of them.

Paddock was prescribed an anti-anxiety drug that can lead to aggressive behaviour, according to reports.

The gunman bought 50 10-milligram tablets of diazepam in June.

But Sheriff Lombardo said he was “absolutely” confident authorities would find out what set off Paddock, a high-stakes gambler and retired accountant and warned: “If this person (Paddock) has been radicalised unbeknownst to us, then we want to identify that source.”